30.8K
Downloads
128
Episodes
Welcome to People in Insurance: Changing the Conversation Join us as we delve into the dynamic intersection of diversity, culture, and technological innovations within the insurance industry. Listen in as Host, Sarah Myerscough, Chief Ideas Officer at Macaii, sits down to talk with trailblazers, thought leaders, and innovators who are reshaping the very fabric of insurance. Here, we bring you stories that not only redefine the narrative but also offer a fresh perspective on the evolving landscape of insurance. From ground-breaking initiatives to transformative insights, we’re your trusted guide through the winds of change. Tune in to People in Insurance, brought to you by Macaii, and stay ahead of the curve in the ever-evolving world of insurance.
Episodes
Tuesday Nov 29, 2022
Tuesday Nov 29, 2022
What is the FCA’s Consumer Duty and how will it affect you and your business?
How much work will it take to meet the requirements of the duty?
When do these changes need to be implemented, and how should you prepare for them?
In this episode of the Insurance Broker Podcast, we are thrilled to be speaking with Tim Chadwick Group Chief Risk Officer at the PIB Group. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, he discusses the wide-reaching nature of the new duty, which could necessitate a substantial revision of various aspects of financial services firms’ operations.
Having determined that, broadly speaking, client satisfaction and protection within the industry is inadequate, the FCA’s new regulation demands a new approach to the consumer journey which protects clients at every stage of their interaction with a financial services firm, including after the purchase of a product. As such, it is essential that brokers understand what the new Duty requires of them.
Quote of the Episode
“In a nutshell, what the regulator is really looking for firms to do is to put themselves in the customer’s shoes and to make sure that they're focused on good customer outcomes, and really importantly, that it's part of their firm's culture. So, this isn't some box-ticking exercise. There are very clear expectations around culture and, importantly, around the role of the board in all of this.”
Throughout the episode, Tim asserts that the Consumer Duty is not merely a superficial administrative exercise. Rather, it reflects a concerted effort on behalf of the FCA to transition from a consideration of customer satisfaction within financial services as a matter of box-ticking to a responsibility embedded in the culture and practices of a given firm. A protection of the customer at all levels must therefore be interwoven through the fabric of the organisation. For some businesses this may require a few tweaks, while for others it may necessitate a systematic restructuring of practices.
Key Takeaways
Most brokers always work in the best interests of their clients. While the FCA recognizes this, they also acknowledge that some firms within the wider financial services sector fail to implement sufficient strategies for the protection and wellbeing of their customers. Some products and services are either not fit for purpose, or ill-suited to their ostensible target market. Furthermore, some products arguably fail to deliver fair value to customers.
In 2020, the FCA conducted a Financial Lives survey, which found that only 35% of financial services firms were deemed to be honest and transparent in their dealings with clients. As such, the Consumer Duty aims to usher in higher standards of customer support, to ensure that their needs are always attended to by firms, particularly if they are vulnerable, and that ultimately, positive customer outcomes are secured. While this notion is not entirely unprecedented, the Duty develops on regulations already in place by focusing more on positive outcomes for customers and imposing a clear responsibility upon firms to evidence that they are consistently achieving these outcomes.
The duty is a series of measures which orbit around a central principle, being that firms must demonstrate that they can deliver good outcomes for retail clients (both individual and commercial).
This notion, Tim explains, is underpinned by three cross-cutting rules:
- Firms must act in good faith, addressing the imbalance in knowledge and expertise between themselves and clients
- Firms must identify areas of foreseeable harm and curtail them
- Firms must enable and support customers in pursuing their financial objectives by providing them with appropriate and accurate information and advice
Tim subsequently outlines four outcomes associated with the consumer duty, explaining in detail the FCA’s guidance about how firms should conduct themselves. To hear his advice, listen to the episode today!
The deadline for implementing the Consumer Duty is 31st July 2023. Thus, it is key to act now to implement behaviours which fulfil these new obligations. Your firm’s preparations for this must be tailored to the specific innerworkings of your business. There is no one-size-fits-all approach; you must recognise the principles of the duty and apply them to the customer journey that your firm offers.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“I think the vast majority of brokers do a great job for their clients; they have the client at the heart of their business, and they're always working [in] the best interest of the client. And, in fact, the FCA recognise that. The FCA acknowledge that they see a lot of examples of good practice. [However], they're still seeing too many firms that are not looking after their customers.”
“When I look at consumer duty, what I see is really a continuation and an evolution of similar themes but […] the consumer duty seems to be much more outcomes orientated… it places a clear responsibility on firms to ensure that customers are receiving good customer outcomes all of the time.”
“It's a bit of a misnomer, calling it the ‘consumer duty’, because it might lead you to believe that actually, it just really applies to personal insurance customers. And that's simply not the case. It applies to all, in the FCA’s words, ‘retail customers’. Now, this definition includes both private individuals and also SME customers.”
“There's also a new conduct rule [which] sets out that all colleagues, not [just] the firm, must act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers. So, everyone who works in a broking firm needs to be able to adhere to that going forwards.”
“In terms of meeting the obligations, no firms should be starting from scratch. So, this is building on things that firms should already have in place for conduct risk or treating customers fairly.”
Resources
FCA – A New Consumer Duty: https://www.fca.org.uk/publications/policy-statements/ps22-9-new-consumer-duty
FCA – Financial Lives 2020 Survey: https://www.fca.org.uk/publications/research/financial-lives-2020-survey-impact-coronavirus
PIB Group | National coverage, local service
About the Guest
Tim Chadwick is the Group Chief Risk Officer at the PIB Group, where he has worked for the past three years. Previously, he has worked in various roles at Jardine Lloyd Thompson, Willis, and Aon. He began his illustrious insurance career at the Royal & Sun Alliance.
Tim’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-chadwick-483b30/
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Monday Nov 21, 2022
Monday Nov 21, 2022
Why is water damage so significant in construction sites? Why does it create so many issues for insurers? How can we raise awareness of the prospect of water damage and reduce its incidence?
In this episode, we’re discussing water damage, a rising problem in construction insurance and one of the leading causes for claims in the UK. It has caught the eye of insurers, who are doing all they can to make sure that construction companies recognise the issue. We’re thrilled to be speaking with returning guest Steve Cox and Jason Baston, who work in the construction branch of Miller Insurance. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, they explain how water damage can create huge litigious and reputational issues for clients, in addition to astronomical costs.
Quote of the Episode
“[Projects are] built on the understanding that there would be this revenue stream attaching to the project as soon as the building was complete and could be opened. And so now we've got this situation where that income is not going to be earned for quite some time [in the event of water damage], potentially a number of years later. And so, there are enormous losses, straight away from the revenue that was intended and part of that financing for the original construction project.”
The costs that can be accrued by water damage are multifaceted and underappreciated. Much like the prospect of water damage itself, it is often not recognised just how significantly this can impact construction companies in many different ways. Water damage doesn’t receive a major profile, and it is generally not perceived as a major incident to the same extent as a fire, for example. This is perhaps due to the fact that it is less visible. As a silent damage event, it doesn’t receive press attention, but can nonetheless be responsible for major losses.
Key Takeaways
Greater awareness of the various consequences of water damage is absolutely essential for both insurers and construction companies alike. When we think of water damage, our minds are often first flung to water ingress - dramatic scenes of floods which only rarely appear on the news. We often fail to think of the water within a building causing damage, but it occurs very often on construction projects, and at considerable costs.
During the episodes, Steve Cox reflects on a series of London fires in the late 1980s and early 90s, after which the insurance industry banded together to create awareness of fire on construction sites, forming the Joint Code of Practice (JCOB) for the prevention of fire on construction sites. This strategy was hugely successful in raising awareness of fire damage, and contributed significantly to the reduction of fire incidence.
A similar strategy unfurled in recent years as water damage became more prominent. A group called Cireg have established a code for water management from a risk management perspective, linked in the resources below. However, this has not (yet) raised the profile of water damage, and it remains a hugely costly problem for insurers and construction companies.
This is particularly significant in light of modern manufacturing processes, namely MMC. When identical units are built off-site, and subsequently put together on-site, if there is a problem with the water management in these individual units, it is replicated throughout the entire building. As such, what might have been a relatively minor water damage incident under traditional construction methods becomes multiplied a hundred-fold.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“Water damage, through a number of things, whether that be ingress of water onto a site, or into a building, or escape of water within a building, has actually become one of the leading causes for insurance claims in the UK, and certainly for insurance claims in buildings undergoing construction or renovation.”
“On the one hand, the growth towards modular and modern methods has created some fantastic opportunities and improvement in the sector. For water damage in particular, however, it creates this potential for serious losses, where you've got the same cause of loss happening multiple times in a single building, all derived from this module, for example. And that can create enormous losses because it's not just one single pod that's potentially lead to a water damage event, but it's multiplied up.”
“Every project in construction is different. And so, where there are consistent risks, then, of course, insurers will create these blanket umbrella documents that can be applied to a project. But what we tend to see is the risks of each and every project are very unique. That's why it's a specialty. And it requires that risk expertise, our role, working with the employers, the contractors, and of course, the insurers as well, is to create a collaborative exercise where everybody's engaged, everybody's considering the unique risks of that particular project. And then looking at how that project can be de-risked, which is, of course, to the benefit of everybody, because nobody wants to see a loss.”
Resources
Cireg – Managing Escape of Water Risk on Construction Sites: https://cireg.org/uploads/1/0/9/0/109026037/cireg_-_managing_escape_of_water_risk_on_construction_sites__5th_edition_november_2019_.pdf
Cireg - https://cireg.org/index.html
Miller Insurance - https://www.miller-insurance.com/
About the Guest
Steve Cox is the Head of Miller Insurance’s UK Cireg International Construction team, with a prolific career of 41 years in the insurance industry, always handling construction insurance.
Steve’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-cox-29b66231
Jason Baston is a construction risk and insurance solutions expert at Miller. He has worked in the property and casualty sector for 20 years, focusing on construction in the last decade.
Jason Baston’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-baston/
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Nov 08, 2022
Tuesday Nov 08, 2022
What constitutes a suitable work/life balance? How much does going the extra mile at work facilitate career progression? How much has the pandemic impacted attitudes to work, productivity and flexibility?
In this episode of the Insurance Broker Podcast, we’re very pleased to be speaking with Laura Hancock, Founding Director of Yutree Insurance and Deputy Chair of the BIBA board. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, she performs a deep dive on a recent BBC article (linked below) which speculates that putting in extra hours and performing additional tasks in order to get ahead in one’s career has transitioned from being the exception to the rule to an employer expectation. Laura argues that there is nothing wrong with putting in additional time and effort at work to get ahead and warns that new attitudes to flexible working facilitated by the pandemic may thwart individuals’ career progression and company competitiveness.
Quote of the Episode
“If you want to get on, you often have to do a little bit more. That doesn't mean the business should expect you to do more, just that if you want to get on, [you should] do a bit more learning. Therefore, taking a step up is just a natural course of events as far as I'm concerned.”
Laura suggests that, particularly for those early in their careers, that stepping up to do additional work is inevitable. If you won’t do it, someone else will, and they will perhaps be more likely to secure the kind of career progression you might be looking for as a result. There is nothing nefarious with taking up the opportunity to show one’s employer that one is going the extra mile; it demonstrates ambition and a drive to succeed, which is beneficial both on an individual and company level.
Key Takeaways
When considering one’s career progression, it is good practice to imagine where you want to be after a certain period of time, then calculate backwards the steps required to get there from the position you are currently in. Invariably, if you want to take lavish holidays, live in a beautiful home, and create a comfortable environment for your future family, that will involve putting in extra time or effort in order to make your achievements visible and recognised at work.
The insurance industry is still grappling with the change caused by the pandemic. Our traditionalist sector has not easily adapted to the notion that people can work from home and businesses can still be successful. While this has proven to be false as a general sentiment, Laura suggests that the servicing issues which brokers are experiencing from insurers can be attributed to the fact that hybrid work models aren’t working as well as they might.
Employees want flexibility, but giving more, or too much flexibility, can create a slump, whereby people become complacent in their positions. Laura argues that it is becoming increasingly important for a balance to be struck regarding flexible working solutions, whereby the community element of office working and the feeling of being valued and accomplished, and achieving progression in one’s career, is not lost.
She suggests that this is particularly crucial with regard to young workers and new graduates, who may be losing a lot by not going into the office on a regular basis. The ability to ask people questions directly as and when is needed is a significant learning opportunity which is squandered by working from home. As such, she argues that there is a duty on behalf of both young new employees and experienced people to be in the office regularly in order to facilitate their learning.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“Insurers are big companies, they take a long time to move. They're like blind juggernauts hurtling into the sun; sometimes it's very difficult to change their direction. And the pandemic has meant we've all had to change direction, we've had to be more nimble. And we've had to change the way we think, to accept flexible working to accept that people can work from home, that you can trust them to do so. And you can have a successful business with a mix of the two.”
“Now we're doing flexible working, people with experience have a duty to be in the office, not all the time, but in the office around the people who are learning, and people who are learning have a duty to be in the office to hear from those others. I think there's a duty on both sides to accept that you learn by experience, you learn by listening, you learn having mentors, and you just can't replicate that remotely.”
‘We live in the most connected society from a technical sense, and we are more disconnected than we've ever been from a community sense.’
‘There is no shame in wanting to do a bit more to get on to be noticed to be successful.’
Resources
BBC: How going above and beyond at work became required - https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220921-how-going-above-and-beyond-at-work-became-required
About the Guest
Laura Hancock is one of the Founding Directors of Yutree Insurance in Newmarket, a commercial insurance broker with an underwriting business. Laura is also Deputy Chair of the BIBA (British Insurance Brokers Association) Board.
Laura’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-hancock-minstlm-2018a99/
Home - Yutree Insurance | Chartered Insurance Brokers
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Oct 25, 2022
Tuesday Oct 25, 2022
Are you considering putting your business on the market but unsure about what to do? Are you concerned about how selling your business might affect customer relationships, your employees, and the brand itself?
In this week’s episode, we’re thrilled to be speaking with David Leslie, Founder and Managing Director of Leslie James Acquisitions. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, he grants listeners a deep dive into the M&A (mergers and acquisitions) insurance market, focusing on what makes vendor businesses attractive to acquirers, and the intricacies of the valuations process. If you’re thinking about selling your business, listen now to find out how!
Quote of the Episode
“People are very important, particularly client-facing people within a business, because to disrupt those relationships between those people and the clients can have an adverse effect. Equally, brand is very important. Most acquirers recognised the importance of brand. Consequently, most acquirers will not seek to change the name and branding of an acquisition, certainly not for a good number of years.”
While a business acquisition can superficially seem to be a somewhat cutthroat affair, in the episode, David Leslie demystifies this notion, by emphasising that acquirers ultimately do not wish to disrupt the relationships between vendor businesses and their customers. He emphasises that in gearing up to a sale, vendors should have succession management in place, so that following the acquisition, the new owners will enable the business to continue operating smoothly. Furthermore, due to the importance of your business’ brand to the sale, it must be clear to the acquirer that this reputation, and the core values underpinning it, will remain unchanged through the transition of ownership. In a previous podcast, linked below, Tim Johnson emphasised that the community element of vendors is crucial to their valuation.
Key Takeaways
Acquirers are not seeking to fundamentally uproot the businesses they purchase, but to capitalise on the reputation that they have already established through the quality of their brand and their people. While in some situations, the acquirer will insert its own people into the business, a concern for many vendors, David notes that this tends to be from an oversight standpoint.
The brand value of a vendor may seem difficult to quantify. David notes that it is measured by its overall image, the impression of its professionalism, how well-known it is for quality customer service, will all increase the appetite of an acquirer. Therefore, you’d like to sell either soon or further down the line, building up your brand should be a priority.
Ultimately, when valuing a vendor, the first thing on the acquirer’s mind is a business’ EBIT DA and its income multiples. A lot of false figures have been thrown around regarding this topic. For a predominantly commercial broking business, David suggests that an acquirer is generally looking at income multiples between roughly two and two and a half times. However, David has seen businesses sold for less than those multiples, and others that have been sold for more.
Fundamentally a valuation boils down to acquirer appetite. The more interest a business has, the more it will sell for, in spite of EBIT DA. To get sufficient interest, its EBIT DA and income multiples will likely be very good, but there are other variables at stake – its brand and people. As such, David asserts that the reputation of a vendor is crucial, perhaps even above all else.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“The value of the brand inherently relates to its image, its quality, its professionalism, all of these sorts of things. And the more well-known the brand is for quality, [good] customer service, and so on, the appetite of an acquirer will increase. And inevitably, increased appetite would lead to an increase in valuation.”
‘[As an acquirer], you are generally, for a predominantly commercial broking business, looking at income multiples somewhere between roughly two and two-and-a-half times.’
‘It’s very much a seller’s market, but it’s down to acquirers’ appetite.’
“For vendors, there are two types of sales essentially, one is a share purchase, or shared sale, where the company and its shares are being bought. So, the shareholders are selling their shares to the acquirer. The other is an asset often referred to as a book sale, where the vendor is essentially selling their book of business, possibly also, the premises, leasehold or freehold plus their staff.”
Resources
The Insurance Broker Podcast – Mergers and Acquisitions with Tim Johnson
Leslie James Acquisitions - https://lesliejamesacquisitions.com/
About the Guest
David Leslie is the Founder and Managing Director of Leslie James Acquisitions, an M&A mergers and acquisitions business operating solely within the insurance sector. He has 41 years’ experience in the sector, having worked for several years as a registered broker.
David Leslie’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-leslie-30696a24/
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Oct 11, 2022
Tuesday Oct 11, 2022
Are you concerned about the rising cost of doing business?
Are you unsure about how you can advise and support the small businesses most deeply affected by this crisis?
In this episode, we’re very pleased to be speaking with David Perry, Managing Director of the FSB Insurance Service, about the rising cost of doing business and the role of insurance in confronting and mitigating this crisis. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, he focuses specifically on how smaller firms struggling with paying their insurance premiums are navigating this crisis alongside the various other political and economic calamities currently unfurling. Furthermore, he explains the steps which both brokers and insurers can take to ease the pressure on small businesses during this period, with reference to a recent report conducted by the FSB which assesses the impact of the hard insurance market on SMEs.
Quote of the Episode
“Our biggest concern is that smaller firms quite often need as much advice as bigger firms, because a lot of them do all sorts of very different things. They just don't do it quite as much as a very large business does. But they still have the same complexities, the same issues to face, and they need to have people to talk to.”
Throughout the episode, David repeatedly emphasises that the size of a business should not impact upon the attention it is paid by insurers and brokers. There is not, and cannot be, a generic, one-size-fits-all approach to tackling problems for small businesses, all of which have their own unique intricacies and issues which should be reflected in their insurance cover. As such, SMEs should be treated as a priority, rather than a sidenote, during the cost of doing business crisis, and must be given sufficient advice and support to ensure that they are paying for appropriate cover.
Key Takeaways
The UK market is predominantly made up of VSMEs, so it’s really important to understand how the rise in premiums and other issues relating to insurance affects this target market. In the recent survey conducted by the FSB (Federation of Small Businesses), 30% of respondents noted that they couldn’t understand their policy. Additionally, one in six had been forced to switch their cover due to availability or price, but they’d had to take a cover reduction.
SMEs and VSMEs are cutting costs in order to pay for their insurance, highlighting a recognition on their behalf of its value and importance. This should be reflected in how brokers and insurers support small businesses, particularly during this period of immense economic turbulence. A key means of doing so would be to streamline the rhetoric of policies and make them more comprehensive to those not literate in more complex insurance jargon.
That being said, insurers must not conflate streamlining with oversimplification. In the episode, David notes that insurers are always trying to keep their question sets down when accommodating e-trade. As such, they’re not always able to get the information needed to equip a business with the right cover. The simplification of e-trade systems can mean that small businesses aren’t always asked the right questions, leading them to be directed to a mid-market or branch team who are generally busier with larger, more complicated projects. Yet, if such clients are advised to purchase a potentially unsuitable policy, it won’t be obvious to them. This possibility of misunderstanding can also contribute to the current PR crisis facing the insurance industry, addressed in a recent episode of the podcast featuring Brett Sainty.
Time is of the essence for SMEs and VSMs, so the simpler the process of insuring them, the better, provided that they are receiving the right advice. Furthermore, small businesses are always evolving. Detailed question sets are needed to tease out the finer details of each business to ensure that the right insurance policy is purchased.
Even as it becomes swamped by other political and economic issues and changes, the conversation around the cost of doing business crisis needs to be kept alive. If you are a small business needing advice and support during this period, the FSB offers a wealth of helpful blogs and articles, linked below.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“We've done a bit of work on the results [of the FSB report]. And they did show, as we all expected, that the hard market was having its impact on businesses and small businesses. In particular, three out of five of the respondents said that their premium had risen. And over half of those people said it had risen by more than 10%.”
“Even before the COVID crisis, the hot market was sort of kicked off by a bit of a crisis in the PI market. We've been shouting about that since January 2020. And it still seems to be a problem.”
“These are busy, busy people – they've not got a department of people placing their insurance. The person that's buying the insurance is often the same person that's making the stuff or delivering the stuff or building the stuff, and haven’t got time, so the simpler we can make it, the better. And we're all in favour of that, provided that the person that we're talking to is giving the right advice.”
‘In our survey 24% of SMEs were cutting other costs in order to pay for insurance, because they recognise the value of it and how important it is.’
Resources
The FSB Insurance Service: https://fsb-insurance-service.com/
FSB Blogs: https://fsb-insurance-service.com/fsb-insurance-service-blog/
The FSB Survey into the cost of doing business crisis - Report: https://www.fsb.org.uk/resource-report/paying-a-premium.html
About the Guest
David Perry is the Managing Director of the FSB Insurance Service, with 30 years’ business experience and previously holding senior positions in Torlot Foy, Minority Venture Partners, Towergate Insurance, and more.
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Oct 04, 2022
Tuesday Oct 04, 2022
Are you a broker keen for your voice to be heard but unsure what channels to use? Are you interested in BIBA membership but unclear about what benefits it can bring for you?
In this week’s episode, we’re very pleased to be speaking with Graeme Trudgill, Executive Director of the British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) about the group’s annual manifesto. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, Graeme elucidates how BIBA collates the concerns of its members over the course of each year, and communicates them to government every January, bringing the concerns of insurance brokers to the forefront of British politics and enabling their voices to be heard. He subsequently explains how BIBA endeavours to achieve the aims established in its manifesto through collaboration with the government, shareholders, and various other organisations. If you need an incentive to join BIBA, look no further and listen to find out why you should!
Quote of the Episode
“BIBA is here purely to serve its members… Someone has to be the voice of insurance brokers. And that's us. And we like to think that with the committees and the hundreds of brokers that are involved as volunteers with BIBA, we have the right issues, the right understanding, to take those forward to government.”
BIBA is a hugely collaborative organisation which seeks to respond to the concerns of its members and the problems they are facing in a timely and effective manner. It is, as Graeme describes it, ‘at the centre of the insurance broking universe’ in the UK, and therefore has significant lobbying power with the government to assuage the issues facing BIBA members. It has no minimum levels of support, and no minimum requirements for membership. Everyone is welcome to join, and the agency it provides is significant, enabling all members to be part of the broader conversation about how broking can and should be conducted, and how the sector’s greatest crises can be dealt with. You don’t just join BIBA, you join in.
Key Takeaways
The BIBA manifesto aims to make the needs and concerns of insurance brokers heard by the government. BIBA listens to members from all across the country, across various specialisms, collates responses, and uses them to curate a document that can help to find a right path with the relevant people to solve these problems. It’s an annual manifesto, restarted from scratch at the start of every year, thereby ensuring that the most prevalent issues are always at the top of the list.
After the manifesto is announced, BIBA aims to work collaboratively with the relevant parties in order to achieve what brokers want, and to deliver solutions beneficial to the general public and companies who are struggling with their insurance cover. Graeme highlights the FCA’s rules for brokers that seem to negatively impact on growth and competitiveness, which is contrary to the government’s pursuit of economic growth. Hence, BIBA is calling for proportionate regulation for insurance brokers. Additionally, BIBA has also sought reform of the financial services compensation scheme, which insurance brokers have unfairly paid a significant amount into despite never exceeding its own pot. The FCA this year reduced the scheme’s call on the insurance broking sector from £68 million to £5 million this year. However, Graeme notes that the funding model still needs a permanent change. As such, the BIBA manifesto is concerned with long-lasting change rather than short solutions.
However, the changes that BIBA is frequently campaigning for such as those outlined above cannot be implemented overnight. During times of political turbulence like those observed over the past few years, the pursuit of its goals can become more difficult. However, Graeme assures that BIBA endeavours to maintain a good relationship with the government and the treasury department in particular, whose members tend to remain in their positions for longer periods of time.
The 2023 BIBA manifesto will aim to tackle a mountain of insurance issues, namely the hard market, underinsurance, the cost of doing business crisis, and the insufficient take-up of cyber insurance. However, it also seeks to tackle a non-insurance issue: the departure of a significant number of brokers from the sector since the pandemic. BIBA is seeking to breathe new life into the sector by recruiting from the next generation of university and school leavers, to educate young people about the benefits of working as brokers. For those of us who sometimes forget what an exciting industry we work in, perhaps now is the time to join BIBA, and to get involved in the conversation about the future of broking.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“The manifesto kicks off our annual contact programme for the whole year ahead, and just sets all those meetings running so that we can take the issues forward with us. So, it's a really good way of getting things moving for brokers.”
“We try to match the government narrative of the day. So, if it's growth, then we try to make lots of the manifesto themed around growth, so that we're working collaboratively. For us, it's all about partnerships and how you can progress those partnerships to achieve those ultimate aims that we want for our members. And our members only want to do their best for their customers. So, it's in everyone's interest to work collaboratively.”
“We try to put together guidance when anything comes along, when things happen, and respond accordingly.”
Resources
The British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) - https://www.biba.org.uk/
Join BIBA - https://insurance.biba.org.uk/join-biba
Insurance trade associations develop fair value assessment template - https://www.biba.org.uk/press-releases/collaboration-assessment-template/
Fair Value Assessment Template Form - https://www.biba.org.uk/tag/template-assesment-form/
BIBA & Allianz create underinsurance guide - https://www.biba.org.uk/press-releases/biba-works-with-allianz-to-create-a-new-guide-to-help-reduce-the-risk-of-underinsurance/
BIBA Guides - https://www.allianz.co.uk/news-and-insight/insight-and-expertise/biba-guides.html
About the Guest
Graeme Trudgill is the Executive Director of the British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA), where he oversees its public affairs activity with the government, which extends to regulators and other stakeholders. He also oversees BIBA’s technical department, which supports members on real insurance issues, and the comms team, which keeps people informed about BIBA’s activities.
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Sep 27, 2022
Tuesday Sep 27, 2022
Are you a new business owner, or intrigued by the possibility? Are you unsure about the nuts and bolts of ‘work culture’, and how it can be effectively constructed in a new business?
In this episode, we’re thrilled to be speaking with Emily Kenna, founder of Sense Risk Solutions, a community broker aiming to provide high quality advice and support to corporates when managing their risks and insurance. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, she explains the importance of establishing a welcoming, encouraging, and challenging work culture within your business. This is accentuated by her desire to empower the next generation of insurance professionals, and she describes various ways in which businesses can facilitate this goal.
Quote of the Episode
“To develop a culture… bring in a network of people to challenge you. Think about how you go about making decisions and [determine] what's the right thing to do. I'm always open to listening to people, and I find it amazing to get those different viewpoints. I hope, as our business grows, that that diversity of thought through the people that we employ will be the making of us.”
Work culture is an intrinsically nebulous concept. It emerges, first and foremost, through the relationships between people. If an open environment is fostered within a business, with opportunities for discussion and debate regarding different strategies and ideas, your staff will be more willing to express their own individual ideas. Enabling ‘diversity of thought’ within your business in this manner will eventually heed great results, and will create a satisfying work environment in which everyone’s opinions and suggestions are heard and valued.
Key Takeaways
When Emily’s son was born, and subsequently diagnosed with nonverbal autism, her approach to collaboration and communication within the industry fundamentally shifted. She recognised that we’re all wired differently; we all have different methods, ideas, and approaches, none of which are intrinsically superior to any other. Achieving a work culture such as that articulated above may seem to be a utopian notion, but it can be achieved by implementing an environment guided by and imbued with empathy.
Another means of creating a positive work culture, particularly in a new business, would be to enable one’s staff to invest in their work/life balance. Emily recognises that business growth is not a sprint, but a marathon, and that, as long as achievable end goals are in sight and are being actively worked towards, staff should not feel encouraged to overwork themselves to the detriment of their personal lives.
Emily is also highly passionate about providing the next generation of insurance professionals with the tools to succeed. It’s easy to feel out of one’s depth in the broking world. The next generation should not be made to feel discouraged from entering our sector by this. As such, Emily advocates for mandatory professional qualifications, similar to those introduced in the financial advisory sector, giving new graduates or apprentices a grounding in the industry, and empowering them by testing their knowledge and affirming their understanding.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“I love our sector. I think it's a really fascinating sector. So many people fall into it. And I don't know why so many people fall into it as opposed to choose it. I don't think we advertise it well enough.”
“We're all wired differently and [we need] to be more accommodating around that. I have to challenge myself on this all the time – ‘why has that person reacted that way?’”
“Ultimately, the most important thing is that it would be positive for the client if you've invested in your staff, and got them up to a certain level. Nobody gets experience overnight.”
“We should really be advising our clients around all their risks, and insurance is just a risk transfer mechanism. But I do see us more as risk advisors, and insurance as a way to transfer risk. So, I think qualifications are a really good way to test knowledge and to feel empowered yourself, when you've had your knowledge tested.”
Resources
Sense Risk Solutions - https://senserisksolutions.co.uk/
About the Guest
Emily Kenna is the founder and director of Sense Risk Solutions. She has nearly 20 years’ experience in the industry, beginning as a graduate trainee for Zurich, before entering the broking sphere.
Emily’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilykenna/
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcasteva
Tuesday Sep 13, 2022
Tuesday Sep 13, 2022
Are you concerned about how your business, and the insurance industry as a whole, is perceived by the public?
In this mini episode of the Insurance Brokers’ Podcast, we’re thrilled to be speaking with Brett Sainty, CEO of BLW Insurance Brokers. As a highly experienced and regarded industry professional, Brett is well-placed to discuss the broader public perception of insurers, which he suggests is gravely insufficient. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, he suggests that the industry is currently facing a significant PR crisis due to an array of circumstances both created by and predating the pandemic, and that this can only be absolved by deeper consideration of the essential needs of customers.
Quote of the Episode
“There's no point in asking chief executives, insurers, or large brokers whether or not there's a PR crisis in the insurance industry. There is. And it's the perception of the customers that we need to be focusing on.”
Brett suggests that the PR crisis facing the insurance industry is irrefutable, and that extensive debate as to whether or not it is happening only delays attempts to resolve it. This must necessarily be rooted, he argues, in a reorientation of public perception of insurers and brokers, which can be achieved, first and foremost, by thinking about the customer above all else.
Key Takeaways
For Brett, the customer service experience offered by the insurance industry is woeful. He suggests that insurance businesses would be well-rewarded, both in the eyes of the public and in the development of the services they offer, by a deeper collective consideration of the customer’s needs.
Too many risks are declared uninsurable, despite the fact that they could be insured at a risk that the customer would be happy with. The industry’s unwillingness to accept more challenging risks that may require some new technical expertise or alterations to certain terms and conditions is halting its ability to recover its public reputation.
The industry’s contribution to society has perhaps never been more vital. In order to encourage entrepreneurial ingenuity, we must return to the basics: the job of insurance is to transfer risk from the balance sheet of businesses. As rates are inevitably hardening due to challenges from the economy, we need to ensure that, while making an underwriting profit is important, our first priority must be the deliverance of this service, and clear communication with those paying premiums.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“Have we got a PR crisis in the insurance industry? Yes, we have, and pretending otherwise is just delaying the time that it will take us to fix it.”
“Many of these risks that are declared uninsurable can be insured at a limit that the customer is happy with. So, we've got to work harder that really hard at that, and open our minds to it, and stop moving stuff onto the ‘too difficult’ pile.”
“I think the industry holistically would be really, really well-rewarded if they just paused for a moment, collectively, and thought about the customer.”
“If we're actively encouraging an entrepreneurial spirit in this country, we have to go back to the basis that the job of insurance is to transfer risk from the balance sheet of these businesses.”
Resources
BLW Insurance Brokers - https://www.blwinsurance.com/
About the Guest
Brett Sainty is the CEO of BLW Insurance Brokers, a multifaceted insurance solutions provider based in Essex. Brett has over 30 years’ experience in the industry, and is a board member of BIBA International and the Wholesale Brokers’ Advisory Board.
Brett’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brett-sainty-22407b33/
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Aug 30, 2022
Tuesday Aug 30, 2022
Have you ever considered starting a podcast?
In this episode, we’re thrilled to be speaking with returning guest Adrian Saunders, Commercial Director of Ecclesiastical Insurance. In conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough, he discusses Ecclesiastical’s first foray into podcasting, Covered In 15, a bi-weekly series of conversations regarding various topics relevant to brokers and insurance professionals, which has already proven to be highly successful. Adrian explains why and how the podcast started, highlighting the importance of sustaining audience engagement with your business’ content as general habits and preferences towards such material progress and develop.
Quote of the Episode
“How do we get content out to our audience of insurance brokers? The tried and tested method is regular e-shots. These are declining in engagement – as our broader societal habits with regard to content have evolved in the past few years. E-shots are perhaps not as effective as they used to be.”
During the pandemic, podcasts exploded into popularity, with listeners skyrocketing and the type of available podcasts diversifying immensely. During the episode, Adrian and Sarah speculate that this can be attributed to a broader shift in consumer trends with regard to content, namely a transition towards audio-visual material. As the interest in and traction of e-shots is seemingly in decline, podcasting arguably presents a great new opportunity to directly engage with your audience, and perhaps to generate a more meaningful connection with them than traditional corporate content can afford.
Key Takeaways
Adrian suggests that the newfound popularity of podcasts exemplifies the importance of bringing to life the business material which once was sent out in emails as e-shots. A key aspect of this is the personal element which podcasts necessarily entail; they feel far less corporate or alienating than traditional written content. Listening to someone explaining their individual, non-scripted opinions makes for great listening, and not only can improve engagement with your business’ material in a numerical sense, but also facilitates a deeper absorption of that information by your target audience.
Covered In 15 has already proven to be hugely successful – its download statistics are off the charts! This can perhaps be attributed to its conversational style; it provides useful information pertaining to a wide range of interesting topics via loosely structured discussions. These are unstilted by forced, corporate jargon and slogans, and the personable approach of the podcast’s hosts and guests creates an intimate feel, as though the listener is sitting in on a discussion amongst friends.
Furthermore, podcasts also offer a starting point to which listeners can be directed to other material, or from which even more content can be created. From one single podcast, clips, blogs, articles, and much more can be created, which can also be distributed to your community, both to broaden your audience and to ensure an increased engagement with the material you wish to disseminate. As Adrian notes, ‘the podcast always leads to something’; each episode of Covered In 15 is a springboard from which to launch listeners into engaging with other material, perhaps a page on the Ecclesiastical website, or a webinar, or a new service the business is offering.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“Over the course of the last couple of years, people have started to consume material differently. People have started, perhaps, listening to podcasts more, we've got more attuned to using webinars, and we use our time a bit differently.”
“The concept of covered 15 is to provide every couple of weeks a running series that doesn't talk about product, it doesn't overtly talk about insurance, it doesn't really talk about cover and stuff like that. What it talks about is things that are hopefully interesting to insurance brokers and insurance professionals who tune in. It might link to insight or particular topics. We've done one on mental wellbeing. Equally, we've done one on the rising value of jewellery and handbags.”
“The challenge is, how do we grow that audience, and how do we keep people engaged?”
“In the last two years, the listenership for podcasting has grown exponentially, it's absolutely huge. And it's continuing to grow.”
“It's a way it was trying to get all of that great material that we've got promoted and presented better to the insurance market.”
Resources
The Covered in 15 Podcast - https://coveredin15.podbean.com/
Ecclesiastical Insurance: Brokers - https://ecclesiastical.com/brokers/
About the Guest
Adrian Saunders is the Commercial Director of Ecclesiastical Insurance. He’s worked in both the company and broker markets, and specialises in developing new enterprises within organisations, and re-engineering existing processes to develop strategy and increase ROL.
Connect with the Guest:
Specialist Insurance & Financial Services | Ecclesiastical
Ecclesiastical Insurance Group: Overview | LinkedIn
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
Tuesday Aug 16, 2022
Tuesday Aug 16, 2022
Are you concerned about achieving ROI for your business when you attend events? Are you unsure how to maximise the marketing and interpersonal potential of exhibitions and conferences?
In this episode, we’re thrilled to be speaking with new guest Rachael Light, and returning guest Gary Williamson, the Specialty Lines Director and Managing Director of Kingsbridge Insurance Brokers, respectively. Following their fantastic approach to this year’s BIBA conference, Rachael and Gary discuss how to use broker events as a platform to spread your business’ message, in conversation with Boston Tullis’ Sarah Myerscough.
Quote of the Episode
“The insurance broker job isn't just to sell an insurance product anymore. What else can we do? How can we change what we offer, or find partners that can supplement that to really fix issues, rather than just seeing our sole goal as providing an insurance product?”
In the episode, Rachael notes that it’s easy to go into a corporate event with a purely transactional agenda in mind, with the aim of ensuring a return on your marketing investment. However, she suggests that taking an active interest in what your potential clients and prospective partners are finding difficulties with is perhaps of even greater importance. The role of the insurance broker has shed its former, traditional definition; it requires active listening which can subsequently be applied to the offerings of the business. As such, simply having a presence at these events is hugely beneficial to your brand, granting you a focalised insight into the problems faced by various sectors within the industry.
Key Takeaways
Kingsbridge made a big splash at this year’s BIBA conference, with a hearse positioned outside the event in order to spread the message about its new funeral director’s product. They became the talk of the town, immediately spreading the message about their business before attendees had even walked through the door. This exemplifies how important events such as BIBA can provide a key platform for creating buzz around your new products and schemes, enabling you to spread the message about your offerings on a vast scale.
Essential to generating this buzz is the personal element of these events, which is also key to ensuring that your business is remembered after the event. Having a presence at an event is only 50% of the job, the other half involves maintaining the momentum afterwards. In light of this, at this year’s Recruitment Agency Expo in October, Boston Tullis Sarah Myerscough will be joining Kingsbridge and interviewing attendees about what they’re hoping for from the event, the problems they are facing, in order both to generate a breadth of information, and to create some unique, personal marketing.
Best Moments/Key Quotes
“I think at these expos and events and conferences, without probably even consciously being aware of it, you have an agenda. And it's really hard not to filter what's coming back at you through the agenda. It takes a lot of practising and it [involves] being wide open to it, sponging up the information.”
“’How do we get ROI for it? How do we get something back from what we're putting in?’ Ultimately, some of these are quick wins, and some of them are a little bit slower, where you're building relationships. We know that from the insurance sector, that's what this industry is all about. I think these kinds of shows, being out and about, building a presence, building a brand in sectors is a long-term win for us as well.”
“Really building relationships with not just with the end customer, but you know, the different trade bodies, or different groups out there in the sectors that we operate in, to really understand… what are the problems around the corner? What's the next challenge? What are the next issues that those guys are going to face in that industry, to make sure that any products that we launch in that space, or products that we already have in that space, can evolve, to suit the needs of where those industries are going?”
Resources
Kingsbridge Insurance Brokers – https://www.kibl.co.uk/
About the Guest
Gary Williamson is the Managing Director of Kingsbridge Insurance Brokers. He has worked in various sales and operational roles at various broking firms, with over 25 years’ experience in the industry.
Gary’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-williamson-7107082b/
Rachael Light is the Specialty Lines Director at Kingsbridge Insurance Brokers, and its responsible for its new schemes division. Rachael previously worked for SEIB Insurance Brokers as a Commercial Manager.
Rachael’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachael-light-dip-cii-71a9969a/
About the Host
Sarah Myerscough is the Sales and Marketing Director of Boston Tullis Group. The founder of The Insurance Brokers Podcast, she brings a wealth of marketing experience and a fresh perspective on marketing in the insurance sector. Boston Tullis works with insurance brokers to offer solutions to business development ceilings, particularly in the rapidly developing fields of video marketing and thought leadership.
Website: https://bostontullis.co.uk/
Evaluation Link: https://s.bostontullis.co.uk/s/podcastevaluation
v